


A Brother's Job

by attic_gremlin



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Fluff, Gen, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), LinkedUniverse, Storytelling, beach fluff!, wind is good at telling tall tales
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-26
Updated: 2020-10-26
Packaged: 2021-03-09 07:41:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27199993
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/attic_gremlin/pseuds/attic_gremlin
Summary: Wind takes a trip home; he really missed his baby sister.
Relationships: Aryll & Link (Legend of Zelda), Aryll (Legend of Zelda) & Wind (Linked Universe)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 68





	A Brother's Job

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lillybatts](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lillybatts/gifts).



> I'm so excited to finally reveal my piece for Seeking's LU Artist Appreciation Project!! This piece was written for Snow, and is based on this piece here: https://www.deviantart.com/snowflakebottles/art/Wind-And-Aryll-854116549 by Snowflakebottles on Deviantart!! 
> 
> It's such a precious drawing and Aryll just looks so starstruck, I love it so much! Go check it out and give it some love! With no further ado, here's A Brother's Job!

Wind’s sides ache with laughter and exertion as he pushes himself to keep running, the wooden sword on his hip bumping rhythmically against his thigh. Aryll’s “Pegleg” (the bucket she’d strapped to her foot) clunks on the bridge with every step but miraculously doesn’t seem to slow her down. She glances over her shoulder, squeals-- she hadn’t realized he was so close! --and puts on more speed, racing off the bridge and onto the beach. Wind laughs breathlessly and tries to keep up (how does this kid have such endless energy?!), but can’t help himself as he gradually slows to a stop on the soft sand. 

Hands on his knees, bent over with exhaustion, he tries to catch his breath. Aryll comes racing back towards him, running  _ literal _ circles around her exhausted big brother, and he indulges himself in a big dramatic flop into the sand. He huffs and puffs, red-faced but utterly content.

He’s finally home. 

After months of traveling with no beaches in sight, the nine heroes had finally landed on the shining sands of Outset Island. He’d been  _ ecstatic _ ; as soon as he recognized where he was, he’d sprinted home. His sister had gotten the first bear hug because of course she did. He’d missed her like he’d miss his right arm. But he’d had a warm reunion with Grandma, too: her hug had lasted several minutes, and she’d put on a fresh pot of her famous soup the very  _ moment  _ she let go of him. The night of his return, both his heart and his belly were fuller than they’d been in a very long time. 

And yet, there are downsides to all situations: After months of traveling at a slow and steady pace, hoping to cover long distances rather than sprint short dashes, Wind is a little out of practice at tag. 

He vows to introduce the game to his traveling companions, though, to keep up on his skills until his next return home: Wild would play with him, surely, Wind thinks, and Hyrule would probably love it, too. 

But, that’s beside the point. In other words: Future-Wind’s problem. Right now, he has a sister to entertain. 

“Shiver me timbers!” he exclaims dramatically, “You’ve gotten fast! Have your legs been growing like beanpoles while I’ve been gone?”

Aryll laughs-- Mission accomplished --and shakes her head. 

“No,” She says. “I’ve been practicing! I raced against my gulls while you were away.”

“Ah, practice!” Wind cries. “The only thing more effective than raw talent. Of course, it’ll take a bit more practice to overtake me, your totally awesome and naturally gifted big brother.”

Aryll rolls her eyes and sits down next to where he’s still sprawled on the ground. She seems to shrink in on herself, tucking her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on top. Wind can still read her like a book, despite his time away. 

“So…” She says.

“So,” Wind replies. 

Aryll stares intently at her sandals, toes wriggling with nerves.

“What have  _ you _ been up to while you were away?” 

Wind pauses. He should have known she would wonder. He’d kept her and Grandma fairly up-to-date through the postal service, but a letter could never compete with his world-famous (okay, maybe island-famous, but still) campfire storytelling. 

He smirks. 

“Well, if you  _ really _ want to know, I guess I could tell you a riveting story from our adventures, but…” (here, he gives an enormous yawn and rolls over onto his side) “I’m just so… so  _ tired _ from all this running around, I could just lie here and--”   
  
“NO!” Aryll cries. “Please don’t fall asleep, big brother, I want to hear the story!” 

She starts to shake him with all her might. “PleasepleasepleasepleasePLEASE!!”

Wind grins and cracks one eye open ever so slightly. 

“Well, since you asked so nicely--”

  
“YES!” She shouts triumphantly, throwing her arms in the air. 

“Okay, okay, okay,” Wind soothes, hauling himself to his feet. “There we were, the nine of us walking peacefully along an old, worn trail. Slowly, ever so slowly, the forest around us grew quieter and quieter, right under our noses, until, finally, it fell completely silent. Only the sound of our boots on the earth rang through the air, until…”

Aryll’s eyes widen in anticipation, and when Wind suddenly draws his wooden sword with a flourish, she squeals in delight. He swears he sees literal stars in her eyes when he hefts it dramatically and waves it around in the air.

“Suddenly!” he cries, “A horde of monsters burst from the trees! Every kind of monster imaginable: Chus, Lizalfos, ‘blins of every shape and size!”

As Wind regales his sister with his latest (only slightly exaggerated) dramatization, he tries to cement her absolutely awed expression in his mind. It’s a familiar expression, but he’d missed it. It’s a look of complete and utter adoration, an expression of awe and wonder that could never be replicated by anyone but a little sister. 

With anyone else, his tales are only so impressive. Sure, he’s accomplished some tough things, but so have the other Links. And even with civilians, he’s mostly just impressive because of the triforce he’d collected. To his sister, though? He’s a hero. She looks up to him so adoringly, so lovingly, so  _ completely, _ because she trusts him to be there for her. Not because of some prophecy, or magic sword, or glowy triangle, though; She holds that trust for him purely and simply because he’s her big brother, and it’s a big brother’s job to look out for his little siblings.

And Wind takes his job  _ very _ seriously.

  
  



End file.
